Water distributor for lithographing presses



July 17, 1923- 1,462,136

' c. HENDERSON WATER DISTRIBUTOR FOR LITHOGRAPHING PRESSES Filed July 27. 7 v 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 wm da w Jufly 17, 1923- C. HENDERSON WATER DISTRIBUTOR FOR LITHOGRAPHING PRESSES Filed y 27, 1917 2 Sheets-Sheet Patented duty 17, 1823.

CARL HENDERSON,

it. D on me war :orsrmuron For.

Application filed. July 27,

To all whomitmay concern:

Be it known that I, CARL HENDERSON, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Oak Park, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Water Distributors for Lithographing Presses, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to printing presses and particularly to a novel moistener or water distributing device for use in connection with a rotarylithographing press.

It is customary in certain types of printing presses to provide means for applying a small quantity of water to the plates and especially in lithographing. This is accompllshed by the use -of a common form of distributing rolls in which one roll (the takeup roll) is mounted with its periphery-in a water container, another roll being mounted for oscillation between the takeup roll and two or more distributing rolls. In the construction heretofore employed two rolls have been mounted in contact with the printing cylinder and water has been applied either to both of'said rolls or to the uppermost roll alone. This is not advantageous and an object in the present invention is to so arrange the rolls that water is supplied to one, in greater quantities than to another, the second roll in contact with the cylinder being adapted to serve the purpose of distributing and taking up excessive water from the surface of the plate asv well as delivering moisture thereto. In arrangements heretofore employed no means have been provided for removing excessive water by providing a roll out of contact with the supply or so distantly removed therefrom as to be substantially out of contact as far as moisture distribution is concerned, and further advanced with relation to the travel of the cylinder than the roll to which the greater quantity of water is supplied.

In the present arrangement of dampening mechanism used in lithographing presses, the first rule of the dampening means to contact the lithographing plate is usually dry. The plate is also dry, the result being that the ink on the plate is picked up by the dry 'roll and the excellence of reproduction from the plate destroyed. By my invention it is possible to eliminate this very 01' OAK PARK, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO THE MIEHLE FRINTING I'FACTURING COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINQIS, A CG 1917. Serial No. 188,188.

undesirable feature by providin a dampening mechanism wherein the r0 1 that first contacts the plate after it leaves its impression position and before reaching the inkng position is theone to which the water 18 first delivered; the result being that a perfect dampening of the plate is ace/ompllshed. The second distributing roll serves to more evenly spread the water over the hthographing plate, or in case an excess of water is supplied to absorb such excess.

The invention will be more readily understood by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which,

Fig. 1 is an end view of a water fountain and transfer means constructed in accordance with my invention, and

Fig. 2 is a similar view but showing a modification thereof.

In the drawings 10 designates a printing or lithographing cylinder to which the printing plates are applied. Water is supplied to a container 11. A take-up roll 12 is mounted with a portion of its periphery in the water. Carried by an arm 14 on shaft 15 is a feed roll 13, the shaft tending to oscillate the arm 14: and to bring the feed roll 13 alternately in contact with the takeup roll 12 and an intermediate transfer roll 16. Mounted so as to be in contact with roll 16 are rolls 17, 17*, and additional rolls 18 and 18, are interposed so as to be always in contact with rolls 17, 17, and cylinder 10. Such an arrangement forms two means of distribution of the water over the plates on the cylinder 10. The direction of rotation of the several rolls is indicated by arrows. It will be observed that water delivered to roll 16 by the feed roll 13 will be delivered to roll 17 before 17, thus the greater portion of the water on roll 16 will be delivered to roll' 17 and through the agency of 18, to the cylinder 10. The water is delivered to the front edge of the plate on the cylinder 10 by the roll 18 and is wiped by the cylinder 18. As a consequence, more water is transferred to the cylinder 10 by roll 18 than by 18*. Under such conditions the roll 18 serves two purposes; one, as a moisture delivering means and two, as a wiper or distributor of the water delivered to the cylinder 10 by the roll 18, thus distributing the water evenly over thesurface of the plates. The efiect is to mcure a-more even and uniform distribution than is possible in any other manner.

In the modification shown in Fig. 2 I do not employ the intermediate rolls 17 and 17 but deliver water directly from roll 16 to roll 18, which is in contact with the cy l inder 10. However, the roll 18* 'is not in contact with the transfer roll 16 so that all the water is transferred to the cylinder 10 by the roll 18.. By mounting the roll 18 with its surface out of contact with transfer roll 16, it serves only as a Wiping or distributing roll and not as an auxiliary water delivering roll. In some instances it is preferable to employ the arrangement of Fig. 2 rather than that of Fig. 1.

In operation the takeup roll 12 constantly takes up water from the container. A portion of the water is transferred to the feed roll 13 when these rolls are in contact. Because of the oscillatory mounting of the feed roll 13 it will not be in contact with both rolls l2 and 16 at the same time. It takes water from the roll 12 and transfers it to roll 16, which water is then transferred through the rolls 17 and 17 to the distributing rolls 18and 18 and thence to the front edge of the plate on cylinder 10. Any excess of water delivered thereto by roll 18 is removed or distributed by roll 18.

In the drawings the form roller 10 is shown as moving in a clockwise direction. The lithographing plate which is attached to the form roller in any desirable manner passes from its impression position to inking position in clockwise direction. It is essential that the dampening of the plate be accomplished between the impression and inking positions, and accomplished in such manner that water be delivered to the first distributing roll which contacts the plate after leaving its impression position. This is accomplished in the manner hereinbefore described, subject to modification as neces sary where slight changes in lithographing presses are demanded.

I claim:

1. In a mechanism for applying moisture to a plate on a rotary lithographing press, the combination of a water fountain, two distributing rollers adapted to engage said plate, and means for conveying a greater quantity of water from said fountain to that distributing roller which first engages said plate as the same passes from the impression position to the inking position.

2. In a mechanism for applying moisture to a plate on a rotary lithograpl'iing press, the combination f water supply means, upper and lower distributing rollers adapted to engage said plate, and means for conveying a greater quantity of water from said water supply to the lower roller which first engages said plate as the same passesfrom the impression position to inking position, the upper roller absorbing any excess water from said plate.

3. In a mechanism of the class described, the combination of a printing cylinder and means for conve ing moisture thereto, including a plurality of rollers, one of said rollers which first engages the type or plate on said cylinder after an impression is made being adapted to convey a greater quantity of moisture to said 0 linder than the other, the moisture trans erred to one of said rollers being transferred thereto independently of the other roller.

4. In a mechanism of the class described, the combination of a printing cylinder and means for conveying moisture thereto and distributing same thereon, including a plurality of associated rollers driven from a source independent of said printing cylinder, one of said rollers which first engages the type or plate on said cylinder after an impression is made being adapted to convey a quantity of moisture to said cylinder, another of said rollers being adapted to distribute the moisture on said type or plate and absorb any excess thereof.

5. In a mechanism of the class described, the combination of a plate cylinder, water 'takeup means, a water transfer roller operatively associated with said takeup means. a plurality of moisture carrying rollers actuated by said transfer roller and adapted to receive moisture from the latter, said moisture carrying rollers being in contact with said cylinder, one of said moisture-carrying cylinder-engaging rollers which first engages the plate after an impression is made being adapted to convey a greater quantity of moisture to said cylinder than the other.

Signed at Chic-ago, State of Illinois, this 20th day of July, A. D. 1917.

' CARL HENDERSON.

Witnesses:

A. G. FIsoHER, M. A. PERKINS. 

